Michiel Borstlap

Michiel Borstlap

Michiel Borstlap (born 5 August 1966 in The Hague) is a Dutch jazz pianist and composer.

Borstlap started playing piano at the age of 5 years.

In 1992 he finished his piano studies with Rob Madna and Henk Elkerbout at the Hilversum conservatoire and won first prize at the European Jazz Competition in Brussels. In 1994 he made his debut at the North Sea Jazz Festival.

His first performances as a leader were in 1992 with his own sextet on the album Day Off . He has travelled worldwide with his own trio, sextet and as a soloist and played at numerous festivals. In 1996 he won the Thelonious Monk Composition Competition with "Memory of Enchantment", a composition which was later recorded by Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter on their album 1 + 1. They played it on their world tours in 1997 and 2000, and (earlier) at the Monk competition.

In 1998 and 1999 he was nominated for the Bird Award at the North Sea Jazz Festival. In 1999 Borstlap received a contract with Verve Records. The first album was Body Acoustic an allusion to the Weather Report album I Sing the Body Electric : where Weather Report tracks were newly interpreted with acoustic instruments, alongside Borstlap’s original compositions. With his subsequently- named group “Body Acoustic” he played on "Verve Nights" at the jazz festivals of Umbria, Berlin or the North Sea Jazz Festival. In 2003 he received a commission from the Emir of Qatar to compose an opera "Ibn Sina" (Avicenna) about Arabian history.

In 2000 he recorded a solo CD Piano - Solo Standards . In 2001 Gramercy Park followed, consisting of three CDs taken from worldwide live recordings[1] on which he shows his whole range and the influence of Bill Evans, Keith Jarrett and Chick Corea in his playing.

He has worked with various international artists including Roy Hargrove, Jimmy Haslip , Les Paul, James Genus, Han Bennink (as a part of a trio with Ernst Glerum), Ernst Reijseger, Hans Dulfer, Eric Vloeimans, Toots Thielemans, Jesse van Ruller, Ernie Watts, Bill Bruford,[2] Jon Hendricks, and Gino Vannelli. In 2004 he went on tour with Dutch singer Edsilia Rombley and from 2000 on he has performed frequently with pop singer Trijntje Oosterhuis.

Discography

  • 1992 Michiel Borstlap Sextet - Day Off
  • 1995 Michiel Borstlap Sextet - The Sextet Live 2CD
  • 1997 Michiel Borstlap Trio – Residence
  • 1999 Michiel Borstlap – Body Acoustic
  • 2000 Michiel Borstlap – LiveLine
  • 2001 Michiel Borstlap - Gramercy Park
  • 2004 Michiel Borstlap – Piano Solo Standards
  • 2004 Michiel Borstlap & Bill Bruford – Live In Holland
  • 2004 Michiel Borstlap & Bill Bruford – Every Step A Dance, Every Word A Song
  • 2005 Michiel Borstlap Trio – Coffee & Jazz
  • 2008 Michiel Borstlap & Bill Bruford – In Two Minds
  • 2008 Michiel Borstlap - Eldorado
  • 2010 Michiel Borstlap - Solo 2010
  • 2011 Michiel Borstlap Trio - Live at the Blues Alley (rec. 14.1.2010)

References

  1. ^ Edelstein, Paula. "Gramercy Park: Review". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/gramercy-park-r564832/review. Retrieved 17 July 2011. 
  2. ^ Fordham, John (29 February 2008). "Bruford/Borstlap Duo, In Two Minds". The Guardian. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/feb/29/jazz.shopping3. Retrieved 17 July 2011. 

External links